The first minister is in North Wales for a campaigning tour of key seats in Wrexham, Clwyd West and Conwy.

With other political parties already choosing candidates and plotting strategies, voters can expect a long run-up to the polls on May 3, 2007.

Mr Morgan will help promote Labour candidates in Wrexham, Colwyn Bay and Llandudno.

He said he was also keen to listen to local people and groups and to see how Labour investment was transforming North Wales.

He will visit Llay resource centre with candidate Lesley Griffiths to meet staff from the new Genesis childcare facility, then travel to Wynn Gardens at Old Colwyn, with Clwyd West AM and minister Alun Pugh where volunteers are regenerating the community.

Mr Morgan said yesterday: "I want to know what people in Wrexham think about access to quality childcare.

"I want to ask people in Old Colwyn how we can work together to make even more progress on the regeneration of their town and I want to see for myself how the younger and older generations in Llandudno are coming together and re-invigorating their community.

"At the Assembly election, people in North Wales will have a choice between the Tories, propped up by Plaid Cymru and the Liberal Democrats, who would run down Wales with wild irresponsibility and out-of-touch priorities, and my Labour Assembly government, which will listen and respond to the real needs of the people of North Wales."

A Plaid Cymru spokesman confirmed the party's election planning is already under way with key announcements due in the next few weeks.

"These days campaigning never really stops. You can't leave it until the last few weeks before polling to try to get your message across because many people will already have made their minds up," he said..

The Conservatives in Wales are also selecting candidates and in the early stages of planning election strategy. "In a modern campaign you have to start planning early," a spokesman said..

"These are important elections because we are aiming to overtake Plaid as the official opposition."